Needed Presence
by Elm
Summary: Vignette of Angel and Cordelia's reaction to the news Buffy is alive. Slightly A/C, but nothing more then what's in the show itself. Set after That Vision Thing.


Title: Needed Presence  
Author: Elm  
Disclaimer: Angel, Cordelia, etc. are all copyrighted to their respective owners.  
Author's Note: A vignette about Angel and Cordelia's reactions over the news of Buffy being back. Set after That Vision Thing. All feedback of any sort can be sent to Elm1101@hotmail.com.  
  
She slowly placed the phone back on the hook, and bit her lower lip as she stared at the wall. A slight breeze wafted through an open window nearby, causing a single wisp of brown hair to fall out of place. Cordelia brushed it back behind her ear and closed her eyes as a small sigh escaped from her lips.  
"Good evening, Cordy."  
Cordelia turned at the sound of his voice, and plastered a bright smile onto her face.  
"Angel! Hiya! Sleep good?"  
The vampire nodded slightly as he descended the main stairwell of the Hyperion Hotel.  
"Yeah. Anything going on?" he questioned, as he made a beeline for the chairs and coffee table in the lobby.  
"Nah, not really! Wesley is just doing the usual herb run at the 'ol herb place downtown. He tried to drag me along, can you believe that? I mean, the last time I went to that place I couldn't get the medicinal smell out of my clothes for weeks!" She scrunched up her face, but then smiled proudly. "So naturally, I suggested Gunn should go since he's never been there before, and he got dragged along by Wesley instead of me."   
  
By this time Angel had already sat down in a chair, newspaper in hand as he began reading about what had been going on in the world.  
"Mmmhmm."  
Cordelia scoffed and turned back to face the counter upon which sat the phone, and resumed doing what she had been doing before. Only after a few moments did she realize that what she had been doing before was sulking. She tried to shake it off, but it was too late.  
"Is something the matter, Cordy?"  
She spun around, a denial already on her tongue, when she realized that he hadn't even looked up from the newspaper. She blinked.  
"Does it have something to do with that phone call that came in a few minutes ago?"  
She bit her lower lip again, and clasped her hands in front of her waist. Taking a deep breath, she made a decision.  
"Yeah, it was just Willow calling. You know, just the usual Sunnydale update! Biker demons crashing the town, thereby causing mass destruction and lots of icky stuff, nothing we wouldn't expect from our beloved Hellmouth!" She smiled brightly again.  
"Mmmhhhmm. Everything okay?"  
She nodded enthusiastically. "Yeah! Everything is great! Couldn't be better!"  
Cordelia looked down at the floorboards of the hotel, and then looked up again.  
"Oh yeah, and Willow and Tara kinda did some sort of mumbo jumbo magic witch thing, and.. well.. um.. Buffy is kinda alive again." As soon as those words left her lips she found herself holding her breath.  
"Mmmhh-"  
Angel stopped in mid-acknowlegement, and for a moment there was only silence. Cordelia watched him carefully, and noticed that the places where he was gripping the newspaper had started to crumple. She immediately recognized this as a sign he was about to slip into one of his silent contemplative moods, and decided to voice her thoughts.  
"So are you leaving to Sunnydale now? To see her? I mean, yay, Buffy is alive again!"  
Silence.  
"But you are coming back right? You just fixed my visions, so now I'll be getting real ones now, so we can help you do the Shanshu thing again!" Her voice had taken on a worried tone, and was quivering slighty.  
Angel slowly folded the newspaper and placed it on his lap.  
"Cordy, why do you think I'd just drop everything and go to Sunnydale? And why do you think I might not come back?"  
He was staring at her with that expressionless stare of his, and she fidgeted nervously. She slowly walked over to the coffee table and sat down on it, crossing her legs and placing her hands on her knees. Cordelia then looked up at Angel.  
"'Cause you left us when she died. And now that she's back, how could you not leave again? Especially considering how you two feel about each other?"  
Angel leaned back in his chair, and studied his Seer. "Well, I haven't been a part of her life for a really long time. I'm sure she has many things to take care of right now, though I have no doubt I'll go to Sunnydale soon. But I don't think now is a good time."  
She looked at his expressionless face. "But you're coming back, right?" she asked hopefully.  
He cocked his head to one side, never taking his gaze off of her. "What's this really about, Cordy?"  
She looked at her hands, and then back up at the vampire. "You're leaving a lot lately, Angel. You left when Darla appeared."  
She paused when she saw him flinch slighty, but then continued.  
"You left for a really long time when Buffy died." She stared directly into his eyes. "Is all this some vampy way of saying that you don't need us any more? That you don't need Wesley, or Gunn, or me any more? That you can be perfectly fine by yourself? I'm.. I'm just afraid still that you don't really need us any more. Need me any more."  
Angel furrowed his brow, and leaned forward in his chair to place his hand over Cordelia's clasped hands.  
"Cordy, you have no idea how much I need you guys." Cordelia opened her mouth, but Angel beat her to it. "And not just because of the visions. Like I told you, Cor, you're important to me, but not because of that. You're important to me because you're my friend, because you care about me, because you're not afraid of me, because of a lot of reasons." He smiled ever so slightly at her, and squeezed her hands gently. "Buffy has the Scooby gang there for her, and I'm not about to leave you after those fake visions. When you're feeling better I'll go up there to see Buffy, but even then I promise to come back."  
Cordelia looked into his eyes for a moment, and then visibly brightened. "Well then, in that case, I've got tons of work that I'm totally being underpaid to do, but I'm doing anyways because I'm such a wonderful person!" She hopped up off the coffee table, and began to walk briskly away. Angel smiled despite himself and picked up the newspaper again. But before he could find the article he had left off on, the vampire felt a pair of slim arms wrap around his neck.  
"Thank you, Angel," whispered Cordelia as she hugged him tightly.  
"Nothing to thank me for," replied Angel as he reached up and patted her arm. "Just returning the favor, since you're always there for me."  
She suddenly let go, and though Angel couldn't see her he somehow knew Cordelia Chase was standing behind him, hands on hips and grinning widely.  
"Well, it's about damn time someone noticed all the great things I do around here!"  
Angel went back to reading the paper.  
"Mmmhmmm."  



End file.
